Right after learning where the power button is and how to log on, one of the first maxims of computing that any user learns is to save often.
Just as important, though frequently overlooked, is its corollary which is to backup frequently. Without a backup, what good are those files that you saved often in the event of a computing mishap?
Two Major Backup Types
There are two main types of Windows backups.
The system backup contains everything you need to fully restore your computer installation in the event of a catastrophic failure, or external event like a fire or drink getting spilled on your computer.
The other kind of backup is a file backup. The file backup is used in the event that an important document gets accidentally deleted, or a favorite picture or critical directory gets written over.
A lot of users have no backup solution at all. This is trouble waiting to happen.
Users that do have a backup utility in place are very likely to not use it properly or often enough. Even those users with a solid well functioning backup frequently have only one of the two kinds of backup implementations in place. Unfortunately, this can be almost as bad as no backup at all.
Imagine restoring your entire system from backup just to recover a single file, or trying to reinstall all of your software by just restoring files. Neither one is pretty.
System Backup Utilities Solutions
Somehow, the universe always seems to know when your computer system is needed most critically and it magically chooses that moment for a hard drive to fail without warning. What you need is to install a new hard drive and just blast a copy of your old system on to it.
When it comes to system backups, the best Windows backup utilities are powerful disk copy programs which produce a complete backup of your hard disk. Keep in mind a disk backup is not the same thing as just copying every file. You need specialized software to handle creating and restoring a disk image.
Look for software that creates a bootable backup or comes with an alternative boot method built-in. Don’t rely on having a Windows boot disk from somewhere else. Even if you did make one and fully tested it, I guarantee that you won’t be able to find it when the time comes. If your backup DVD is bootable on its own, that’s best.
Paragon Drive Backup 9.0 Personal fits the bill with full system backups and bootability from its “Backup Capsule Wizard” which can be installed quickly and easily to a USB key drive or CD.
File Backup Utilities
Full system crashes, and even hard disk failures are relatively rare. Accidentally deleting or writing over the top of an important file is not. That is why file backup utilities should do automatic backup, preferably as close as possible to real-time backup.
Even better is a utility that handles “versioning” for you; keeping multiple versions of a file as you edit it so that after working for 6 hours on a spreadsheet you can go back to the version you saved 3 times ago after finding out that you mistakenly erased a whole column.
Best bets for this type of backup are services which run in the background. If possible backup to a home server, network drive array, or just another computer with enough disk space, you can use the free SyncToy to backup files across your home network.
Otherwise, consider Mozy and Carbonite.
Mozy offers a small amount of storage for free, so you can try it out for free first and upgrade if you like it. Check out Dave’s article about backups using cloud resources for more info on Mozy.
Carbonite offers an unlimited amount of backup space for a very reasonable annual fee.
Avoid “backup systems” with file sharing abilities. You’re backing up your data here, not trying to share your spring break photos. Privacy (without having to set it up) and a focus on backups, not sharing, is the goal.
However, keep in mind it doesn’t take many RAW files of your pictures to push your backup needs to 10, 20, or even 50 GB. That’s not only not free, its painfully slow.
Rest Easier With Complete Windows Backups In Place
Get both systems installed and running on your computer and you can rest easy knowing that if the day ever comes when you need saving, you’ll be ready to restore.
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